


The Stranger

by Raziel12



Category: Final Fantasy XIII
Genre: AU?, Dimension hopping?, time travel?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-17
Updated: 2014-06-08
Packaged: 2018-01-12 19:36:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,623
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1196913
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Raziel12/pseuds/Raziel12
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A mysterious stranger is found in the wilds near Oerba. By all rights, she should have been put to death or imprisoned. But instead, the elders called for the great seer of Paddra. After that, they stared calling her "the saviour", a gift from Etro and the Maker. A fourteen-year-old Fang doesn't understand what all the fuss is about. And then she meets this saviour.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Stranger

**The Stranger**

Fang had been one of the first to hear the stories, wild tales of a mysterious stranger found badly wounded, but alive, in the wilds near Oerba. In these troubled times, strangers were far from uncommon, but few of them were welcome. The War of Transgression had changed everything, and the clans had grown ever warier of the unfamiliar.

She had half-expected the elders to order the stranger executed on the spot. At the very least, the stranger should have been imprisoned. But instead, the elders had sent for the great seer of Paddra. The seer, a young woman with the saddest eyes that Fang had ever seen, had arrived within days. It was almost as though she had expected the elders’ summons. 

The seer had met with the stranger in private as they healed, kept under armed guard in a hidden location. The seer had left that same day, and the elders had announced their decision, one that astonished everyone. The stranger, a woman, was to be made welcome amongst the clans and afforded all the respect and honour given to the most esteemed of warriors.

But there was more.

In her training sessions with the more experienced warriors, Fang heard whispers of the stranger’s purpose. They called her the saviour, and they spoke of her as a gift from Etro and the Maker, a sign of divine favour. She was proof, the warriors claimed, that the gods had not forsaken them. She would lead them to victory over the Vipers.

Fang wasn’t sure what to believe. The warriors were not given to idle gossip, but it all sounded so… impossible. Why should Etro and the Maker hear their prayers now after so many years of battle? Why not earlier?

But she what did she know? She was no seer or elder. She was only fourteen, a fledgling warrior who wanted nothing more than to get through her rites of passage so that she could go and fight alongside the other veterans. Still, there was no denying the change this woman had brought to Oerba. The whole city had come to learn of the rumours, and all the warriors who had sparred against the saviour spoke of her unmatched skill.

There was faith in the eyes of those warriors, a faith that had been dwindling for years. It was only after Fang saw the saviour with her own eyes that she understood why they believed in this stranger.

X X X

“You need to get out of here, Vanille.” Fang grabbed Vanille’s arm. “Go!”

The redhead shook her head. “I’m staying here with you. I can help.”

Help? Fang wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry, and she had to fight the urge to pick Vanille up and throw her into one of the nearby houses. Her little sister was brave, but she hadn’t had nearly as much training as Fang. She was also a great deal smaller and younger.

The air was filled with the clanging of warning bells and the smells of smoke and ash. Cocoon had launched another raid, and their ships filled the skies over Oerba as they opened fire and dropped soldiers onto the ground. The city’s defences had already sprung into action, warriors gathering in the streets as their anti-aircraft weaponry returned fire.

“Vanille.” Fang tried to push Vanille toward one of the houses. “I’m not asking you – I’m telling you. You have to get out of here now!”

But Vanille wouldn’t budge. Fang’s jaw clenched. She was talented for a fourteen-year-old. All of the warriors she had trained with said that she was one of the best they’d ever seen for her age. But she was still a long, long way from attaining her full height and strength, and her experience was confined mostly to hunting and scouting. She had never actually fought against the Vipers.

In another few years, perhaps, she might be skilled enough to fight and protect Vanille at the same time, but not yet. The spear she had wasn’t even hers – it was an old hand-me-down from one of the veterans. She wouldn’t receive her own spear until she’d gotten through her rites of passage.

“Vanille, please. Go.”

The please seemed to do it. Vanille bit her lip and then nodded. “Fine, but you have to be careful –”

BOOM.

The building opposite them exploded in a spray of fire and wood. Fang shoved Vanille back and covered her with her own body. Bits of burning timber raining down around them, and Fang hissed as a burning plank clattered off her shoulder. When it had finally stopped, she turned, eyes widening as she realised what had happened.

One of the Cocoon ships had crashed into the building. But somehow, most of the soldiers inside were still alive. Two dozen of them stumbled out of the wreckage, readying a variety of different weapons. They looked up and down the street, and a shiver ran down Fang’s spine. It was only a matter of time before some warriors came, but right now, she and Vanille were completely alone.

“Vanille.” Fang’s hands tightened on her spear. “Stay behind me.”

Vanille swallowed thickly and nodded. “Okay.”

The soldiers attacked – the Vipers didn’t care if they were killing warriors or children. Fang lunged forward to meet them. She parried the first strike and cursed at the sheer force behind the blow. Her opponent’s sword skittered off her spear, and she twisted away, driving the point of her weapon into his thigh. The spear shuddered as it scraped against bone, and he went down with a scream. Vanille brought her binding rod down on his head as hard as she could.

Fang’s gut clenched. Vanille was twelve – she shouldn’t have to be doing this. But now was not the time to be worrying about things like that. Fang ducked another attacked and drove her spear up into her opponent’s gut. It was a perfect thrust, one she’d practiced a thousand times, but she’d never killed anyone before. Time seemed to freeze, and the expression on her opponent’s face as he realised what had happened was burned into her mind – it was a mixture of shock, horror, and stunned disbelief.

He slumped to the ground, and bile burned at the back of Fang’s throat. She found herself staring, unable to look away as he clutched at the wound in a hopeless attempt to stem the bleeding. Then something caught her hard across the side of the head. She tumbled to the ground, vaguely aware of the taste of blood in her mouth. She grabbed for her spear only to find one of the soldier’s glaring down at her, his rifle aimed at her head.

“Coward.” She spat. “Viper.”

But he never got the chance to fire. There was a flash of impossibly swift movement, and he flew back, blood spurting from what seemed like a dozen wounds. He crashed to the ground twenty feet away, already dead. 

And that was when Fang saw the saviour for the first time.

The saviour was a tall woman with pink hair. Blood dripped off her sword, which was still held out in the last motion of the strike that had killed her opponent. Her back was turned, so Fang couldn’t see her eyes, but the warriors had told her that they were a fierce, unyielding blue. She wore the traditional garments of the Yun, but no Yun had ever had pink hair. The soldiers from Cocoon backed away, unsure of what to make of this new threat.

“Get up.” The saviour’s voice was barely audible over the sounds of battle that filtered through the city. “The fight isn’t over yet.”

Fang shivered. That voice was cold and deadly, and there was no shortage of menace in it. Yet she was somehow certain that none of that menace was directed at her. She stood and took a moment to urge Vanille into one of the nearby buildings. Finally, the redhead did as she was told. Fang’s mouth was dry, but her hands were sweaty. With each moment, the tension built. She stopped just behind the saviour, her spear at the ready. 

“Follow my lead.” The saviour’s stance shifted. “I will clear a path. Deal with the ones I leave behind.”

It was a common tactic – the strongest warrior would forge ahead, scattering the enemy while the less experienced warriors took advantage of the chaos. Fang nodded.

“Right.”

“Good.” The saviour paused, glancing over her shoulder. “You can do this, Fang.”

What? Fang gasped. How did the saviour even know her name?

But then the saviour was moving, and it was all Fang could do not to stare. The saviour was beautiful to watch. She was like a bolt of lightning, seemingly nowhere but everywhere at once. She blurred from one opponent to another, lashing out with blade and fist, scattering the soldiers in her wake. Fang shook herself and joined the fray. The saviour had broken apart the soldiers’ formation and split their attention. Fang would never get a better chance to strike.

It was over in moments. Fang had killed a few more of the soldiers, but the saviour had done the rest. It still hadn’t quite sunk in – she was blooded now, she had killed. Nausea threatened to overwhelm her, and she fought the urge to scrub at the blood covering her hands. There was a rustle behind her, and she turned. One of the soldiers was still alive –

Thud.

The saviour was suddenly there, her blade imbedded in his chest. She pulled the weapon out, and the soldier flopped back into the dirt. 

“Always watch your back.” The saviour flicked the blood off her sword. “It is the strike you don’t expect that kills you.”

Those blue eyes – they were stern yet kind at the same time. Fang couldn’t look away.

“Um…”

“You’ve done enough for today.” The saviour leapt up onto a nearby roof. “Go to one of the shelters with your sister.” Then she was moving, leaping easily across the rooftops to find another battle.

Vanille ran out of the building and threw her arms around Fang. “Fang!” Vanille sniffled and clutched at Fang’s waist. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen. I – I…”

“It’s okay.” Fang stroked Vanille’s hair, her gaze turned to the rooftops. “But we should go to one of the shelters now.”

X X X

Despite her brush with death, Fang was pleased to learn that the attack had been soundly repelled. They had taken losses, but the warriors of Oerba had inflicted far greater casualties in return. They had also been able to salvage valuable equipment and weaponry from several captured ships along with valuable information from dozens of prisoners.

It was a great victory, and many attributed it to the saviour. She had predicted the enemy’s movements almost perfectly and fought with unmatched strength and ferocity. Already, the warriors had begun to refer to her as an army of one. 

It had been difficult coming to terms with her first kill, but Fang was proud to have fought at the saviour’s side. However, there were other things to worry about as well. Warriors took their rites of passage at the age of sixteen. In the two years prior, it was customary for them to be chosen by one of the veterans who would train them personally.

Fang had trained with many of the veterans, and she was certain that she proven her worth to them. The elders had even spoken well of her in the aftermath of the raid. But although many of her peers had now been chosen, she was still without a tutor.

The snub drove her to the training yards where she practiced with greater and greater intensity. The veterans met her with knowing smiles and amused looks, but still, none of them would choose her. It was like they were keeping some kind of secret from her. Had all their words of praise been nothing but a lie? Was she somehow lacking? 

Vanille told her not to worry about it, but Fang couldn’t stop herself. Vanille was her little sister, but she was not a warrior. She didn’t – couldn’t – understand. Not being chosen would be a mark of unbearable shame. It would follow Fang throughout her entire life and render all the training she had done so far utterly meaningless.

Like Vanille, the matron at the orphanage also advised her to remain hopeful. The old woman was the closest thing that Fang had to a mother, and she was wise in her own way. It was said that the matron knew many of the elders personally, so perhaps she knew something that Fang did not.

One morning, the matron called Fang and Vanille to her. There were tears in her eyes, and Fang felt the first stirrings of unease. Had something bad happened?

“Fang, Vanille – you two will no longer be living here.”

Fang stared. Vanille slumped back into a chair. This was… this couldn’t be happening. The orphanage was the only home they’d ever known! “Matron –”

The matron smiled, and Fang realised that her tears were happy tears. She wrapped her arms around them and pulled them to her so tightly that Fang could barely breathe.

“I am sad to see you go, but I am not throwing you out. Not even the elders could order me to do that. But you have been given a great honour. You are always welcome to visit, but I think you will like your new home better.”

“New home?” Vanille whispered.

“It is an old custom, and I have not seen it used for many years.” The matron pulled away, wiping at her eyes. “But in the old days, it was not uncommon for a fledgling warrior to live with their tutor. Since you have no family, Fang, the elders agreed that this custom would suit you better. I begged them to let Vanille go with you, but your tutor had already asked for her as well. She wanted both of you – demanded both of you.”

Fang and Vanille had exchanged looks. That had always been a sticking point. Over the years, there had been some people willing to adopt one of them, but never both of them, and they refused to leave each other behind.

“Who wanted both of us?” Fang asked.

The matron looked behind them. “She did.”

And there, behind them, was the saviour. She met Fang’s gaze evenly, and there was a warmth and fondness there that it made seem as though they’d known each other for many years. Fang found herself smiling.

“There was a lot of competition amongst the veterans to be your tutor. I had to fight most of them to earn the right to train you.” The saviour’s lips curled. “But I know that you will be worth it.” 

Fang’s heart raced. “Then you remembered…”

“Of course I did. It isn’t everyday that I meet a fourteen-year-old girl who can keep up with me. You have a lot of potential. I would see you reach it.” The saviour’s gaze drifted to Vanille, softening slightly as she took in the younger girl’s nervousness. “You fought at your sister’s side despite your fear. I respect that.”

“She has kindly offered to train both of you,” the matron said. “You will be living with her from now on.”

“Wait,” Fang said. “You haven’t even told us your name yet.” 

The saviour smiled. “They call me Lightning.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I neither own Final Fantasy, nor am I making any money off of this.
> 
> Well, well, well, what’s going on here? Is it time-travel? Is it an alternate universe? Is it a bit of dimension hopping? I think I’ll let you guys puzzle that one out on your own since there’s definitely a few ways that you could interpret this story. I’ve been asked a number of times for a story like this, so I thought I’d use my period of convalescence to get it done. And now I have the urge to cackle – there’s so many possibilities.
> 
> If you enjoy my writing, please give my original fiction a try. You can find links to it in my profile.
> 
> As always, I appreciate feedback. Reviews and comments are welcome.


	2. The Beginning

**The Beginning**

Fang had expected Lightning to live in luxury. The older woman’s home was large, but it was modest at the same time. A handful of servants came out to welcome them, and Lightning greeted them with a curt nod of her head. 

Inside, each room and corridor of the house was sparsely decorated. The furniture was well made but simple, devoid of the extravagance that so many of the more exalted warriors enjoyed. The only thing that looked out of place was the spear that held pride of place on the mantelpiece in Lightning’s study.

It was a magnificent weapon, all sleek, finely forged lethality. Fang couldn’t help but stare. A great weapon did not make a great warrior, but she could appreciate the craftsmanship, the care, that had gone into making this spear. There was something about it, something familiar even though she’d never seen it before. It made her want to reach out and –

“That spear is not for you.” Lightning caught Fang’s wrist and closed the door of her study. “Not yet.”

“Is it yours?” Fang whispered. “It’s… it’s beautiful.”

“I know how to use it, yes, but it isn’t mine. It belonged to someone very dear to me. She was better with a spear than anyone I’ve ever met.” Lightning stared at her, but Fang had a feeling that she was seeing someone else.

“What happened to her?” If that person was anywhere near as good with a spear as Lightning was with a sword, Fang wanted to meet her. 

“Fang!” Vanille hissed and tugged on her sari. “Don’t ask her that.”

Fang winced. Lightning’s brows had furrowed ever so slightly, and her mouth had firmed into a thin line. Those eyes of hers sharpened, lost in another time and place, before her gaze softened and drifted back to Fang and Vanille. “Um…”

“I lost her,” Lightning said. “But I will find her again. I’m sure of it.”

“Oh.” And now Fang felt like a jerk. Of course Lightning had lost people in the war. Just because she was kind of a legendary warrior didn’t mean she could protect everyone. Nobody was that strong. “Uh… sorry about that.”

“There is no need to apologise. Now, follow me. I’ll show the two of you to your room.”

“Our room?” Vanille grinned. “As in, the two of us in one room?”

“Yes.” Lightning slowed her pace a fraction so that Vanille could keep up. She led them down the corridor to a large bedroom. There were two beds inside along with all the furniture the two sisters would need. “I thought you two might find it easier to adjust this way. Once you’ve settled in, one of you is more than welcome to take the bedroom next door.”

Fang almost breathed a sigh of relief. Ever since they’d met at the orphanage, she and Vanille had shared a room. They were both old enough to sleep on their own now, but Fang had always felt more comfortable with Vanille nearby. How could she protect her sister if they weren’t together?

“Where do you sleep?” Vanille asked. Their new room was great. It was much bigger than the one they’d had at the orphanage. And although the furniture was quite simple, all of it seemed new. 

“I sleep at the beginning of the corridor.”

Why would anyone want to sleep at the beginning of the corridor? That was the least private spot. Fang’s brows furrowed. It wasn’t about privacy. Anyone who wanted to reach her and Vanille would have to pass by Lightning’s bedroom. And the position of Lightning’s bedroom also made it much easier for her to reach the rest of house.

“Where are the rest of your things?” Lightning glanced at the backpacks that Fang and Vanille carried. “Are they back at the orphanage?”

“Actually, we’re carrying everything we own.” Fang shrugged. The war had made things tough for everyone. “We’ve never had much.”

“That will change.” There was no pity in Lightning’s eyes, only understanding. “But you will have to work for it.” Her eyes narrowed, and Fang had to fight the urge to take a step back. “I don’t believe in giving things away for free, but I intend to give you two every opportunity to earn what you want.”

“That sounds fair.” Vanille didn’t think Lightning was trying to be mean. However, the older woman was pretty scary when she talked like that. “So, what are you going to be teaching us?” Whatever Lightning had planned, Vanille was sure that she and Fang could take it. They’d never been afraid of hard work.

“Whatever I think you need to know.” Lightning turned on her heel. “Put your things in your room and then feel free to look around. The servants have been instructed to show you around the house. They will also take measurements for new clothes. I will not have either of you walking around in rags. In exchange…” Lightning stopped and looked back at them over her shoulder. “I want you two to pay close attention to this house. I want you to memorise where everything is and how everything is done. A warrior’s home should be their fortress, and no fortress is strong unless those defending it know every inch of it like the back of their hand.”

“Couldn’t you show us around?” Vanille asked. “Uh… maybe?”

Lightning smiled faintly. For a moment, Fang thought that Lightning was going to ruffle Vanille’s hair, but her hand stopped halfway and then went back to the handle of her sword. “I have some important matters to discuss with the elders. It will take most of the day. I may even return after nightfall. Do not wait up for me.”

And then, just like that, Lightning left. 

“Phew.” Vanille wiped the back of her hand across her forehead. “That was weird… and kind of scary.”

“That’s one way of putting it.” Fang nodded slowly. “I think… I think she likes us, but it’s hard to tell. She’s so…”

“Closed off.” Vanille scratched the back of her head. “It’s like she doesn’t know how to smile properly or something.”

“That seems sad.” Fang sighed. “Never mind. Let’s go put our stuff away.”

It didn’t take them long to put their meagre belongings away, but it took Fang almost ten minutes to drag Vanille off her new bed. Despite its plain appearance, the mattress was much softer than anything they’d had before.

“It’s like sleeping on a cloud.” Vanille giggled. “I could get used to this.”

“Don’t get too lazy,” Fang said. “I have a feeling that Lightning doesn’t appreciate lazy.” She hauled Vanille to her feet. “Come on, let’s go take a look around. And remember what Lightning said: we’re supposed to learn how everything works around here.”

They wandered back down the corridor and after an awkward turn or two – they really hadn’t been paying that much attention the first time – they found themselves in a large courtyard. Training equipment lined one of the walls, and a handful of training dummies were set up on one end of the courtyard. This must be where Lightning did most of her training.

“Oh, you must be Fang and Vanille.”

Fang turned. One of the servants was sweeping nearby. She was a woman in her mid-forties, and her dark brown hair had a few streaks of grey. But the smile on her face was warm and open, and her eyes twinkled as she waved Fang and Vanille over.

“Come over here. Let me have a closer look at you two.” The woman put her broom down. “My name is Elmyra. So, which one of you is Fang and which one of you is Vanille?”

Vanille returned Elmyra’s smile with one of her own. “I’m Vanille, and she’s Fang.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet you two.” Elmyra paused for a moment and tapped her chin. “Hmm… would you like me to show you around? You look a little lost.”

“That would be great.” Fang chuckled. “I… we weren’t paying too much attention on our way in.”

“I’m sure you had a lot on your mind.” Elmyra gave them a playful scowl. “And you’ve probably noticed by now – Lightning’s isn’t the most talkative person. She left you here while she ran off to talk to the elders, didn’t she?”

“She might have.” Fang had a feeling that she was going to like Elmyra, and she could tell from the broad grin on Vanille’s face that her sister already did.

Elmyra showed them around the house again, and Fang made sure to take careful note of where all the furniture was and how all the rooms and corridors fit together. She also introduced them to the other servants. Fang had no intention of disappointing Lightning on the very first day of her training.

The last person that Elmyra introduced them to was her daughter, Aerith.

“Aerith, are you busy?” 

The young woman sorting through an assortment of herbs and potions looked up and waved. She had brown hair and green eyes, and the smile on her face was an almost perfect copy of Elmyra’s. “Good morning, mother.”

“This is Fang, and this is Vanille. They are Lightning’s students.”

“Oh.” Aerith got to her feet and then nearly tripped when her dress caught on her chair. Fang reached out to steady her. Aerith looked to be around her age. “It’s nice to meet you two.”

“Are you a healer?” Vanille asked. “I recognise some of those herbs.”

“Yes, I am. I’m training with one of the healers who lives nearby.” Aerith giggled. “If Lightning is going to be training you two, I think we’ll be seeing each other quite a lot.”

Fang shuddered. She hadn’t thought about that. Sparring Lightning would, at the very least, entail plenty of bruises and probably some blood. “You might be right about that.”

Fang and Vanille spent the rest of that day talking to the other servants and learning the routines of the house. Apparently, Lightning was an early riser, which meant they would be too. The servants had nothing but praise for Lightning. The pink haired woman paid a good wage, and she made sure to use what influence she had to look after the members of her household.

Night fell, and Lightning still hadn’t returned. Dinner that evening was a rich, spicy stew served with freshly baked bread. Fang and Vanille took their meal with the servants, and Fang caught a glimpse of approval in Elmyra’s eyes. Lightning, it seemed, took her meals with the servants too.

“Do you know when Lightning will be back?” Vanille reached for another piece of bread. “She’s been gone all day.”

“I’m not sure.” Elmyra grimaced. “She has a lot of business to discuss with the elders.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “You know how the war is going. If we want to win, then the clans have to unite. But there is so much bad blood between everyone. I don’t know if it can be done.” 

“But the Vipers are united.” Fang hissed. “That’s why they’re winning.”

“That’s one of the reason, yes. Lightning wants to the elders to send envoys to the other clans. But Lightning had a hard enough time getting the elders to trust her. There’s no telling how long it will take for the other clans to trust her. Most of the elders are in favour of leaving things as they are. It’s enough for them that we are safe for the time being.”

“There’s so much politics involved.” Fang growled. “I’m a warrior. I fight. I thought Lightning was the same.”

“Lightning is a warrior, Fang, but she is also a leader.” Elmyra patted Fang’s hand. “I have no doubt that she’ll give you all the training you need.”

“What about me?” Vanille put her bread down. 

“And you.” Elmyra chuckled. “Although I can’t really imagine you with a sword or a spear.”

“A binding rod is a perfectly respectable weapon,” Vanille said archly. Then she giggled. “You’re right. I don’t think I’d be too good with a sword or a spear.”

The two of them went to bed after dinner, and Vanille was out like a light. Fang, however, had a much harder time falling asleep. So much had happened. Everything had changed. When she finally drifted off, she saw the spear in Lightning’s study again. But instead of being kept up on the mantelpiece, it was in her hands, and it felt perfect there.

X X X

It was the unearthly stillness and quiet that woke Fang. She’d honed her senses as best she could, and she’d learned that it was never completely still or quiet in or around Oerba. But it was very quiet now and very still. She sat up and flicked the light switch, but the lights didn’t turn on. A glance under the door revealed nothing but darkness. None of the other lights in the house were on. Had someone cut the power?

“Vanille.” Fang crept over to her sister’s bed. Vanille awakened with a cry, but Fang clamped one hand over her mouth. “Quiet. There’s something wrong.”

“Oh.” Vanille eased out of bed and grabbed her binding rod, and Fang reached for her spear. She gulped. “What do we do now, Fang?”

“We can’t stay here. We’re sitting ducks.” Fang took a deep breath. She needed to stay calm. She couldn’t afford to panic. “If something is going on, then we need to raise the alarm. To do that, we have to sneak out of here. Understand?”

Vanille nodded. “Lead the way.”

Fang led Vanille out of their bedroom and down the corridor. It was dark, and she had to squint just to see anything. None of the lights were on. They crept down the corridor, and Fang glanced toward the courtyard. They needed to avoid open ground, but the front door was still quite far. She bit her lip.

“Vanille –”

Something scratched against the floor behind them. She shoved Vanille out of the way and turned to meet the blow she knew was coming. Something smashed into her spear – a sword – and sparks flew. She caught a glimpse of a helmet and armour. It was the kind the Vipers wore. She bit back a curse. They must have infiltrated Oerba somehow. 

“Run, Vanille!” Fang barely got the words out before she was knocked off her feet. The Viper rushed past, and Vanille yelped and ducked under a strike aimed at her head. Fang stumbled to her feet and stabbed at her opponent’s side, but the Viper dodged, and Fang received a hard kick to the gut that drove the wind out of her and tossed her down the corridor.

There was a hiss – Vanille’s binding rod – and the Viper took to the air, dodging the wires with impossible ease. Fang forced herself to stand and lunged to strike at the Viper before they could take another swing at Vanille. Her spear scraped off the wall, and Fang growled. The corridor wasn’t wide enough for her to use her weapon properly. But how wide was it? In the dim light it was almost impossible to tell. She’d have to rely on her memory.

Fang struck again, spear shooting forward like a striking snake, but her opponent parried the blow with something approaching contempt. The Viper’s sword whistled toward her head, and Fang ducked under the attack and reached out to grab the table that she knew was behind her. She threw the table at the Viper and lunged past, grabbing Vanille and running for the front door.

But as fast as she was, the Viper was even faster. There was a whoosh, and Fang screeched to a halt. Her spear came up just in time to block an attack that struck with all the force of an avalanche. The blow lifted her up off her feet, and she skidded to a stop. She wasn’t in the corridor anymore – she was in the courtyard. Her gaze darted from side to side, but she could hardly see anything. There must be a cloud covering the moon. Where was Vanille?

“I’m over here.” Vanille got to her feet a few yards away from Fang. “We’re in trouble, aren’t we?”

“We are.” Fang’s hold tightened on her spear. “I don’t think I can beat them in a fair fight. You need to wait for an opening. If you can tangle them for a second, I think I can get a good hit in.”

Vanille shifted restlessly. There wasn’t much light, but Fang could still make out the vague shape of her opponent: a woman. The woman stopped at the edge of the courtyard, and then rushed forward again, impossibly fast, and Fang hissed as the flat of the woman’s sword rapped against her side. The woman twisted away from Fang’s counter strike, and another blow rattled into the same place on Fang’s side. The breath rushed out of her lungs, and she stumbled back. 

The darkness closed in on her, and Fang forced herself to take a few deep breaths despite the pain in her ribs. She took a slow step forward and then sprang, trying to drive the Viper back. But her opponent simply parried the first strike and then began to hammer away at her injured side. Fang cursed – until now, she’d never noticed the small hole in her guard. But the Viper left her in no doubt about it as she drove her back and back. Fang snarled. The Viper was toying with her. But Fang had learned from her mistake. She tightened her guard, and caught the next strike on the shaft of her spear – only for the Viper to strike at yet another minute gap in Fang’s defence.

Fang rolled with the strike – it was going to leave a bruise – and cried out. “Now, Vanille!”

Vanille lashed out with her binding rod. The weapon’s wires hissed through the air, and the Viper flicked her wrist. Something flew threw the air and expanded – a net. Vanille cried out and went down, and Fang saw red. Nobody hurt her sister. Nobody. 

With a roar, Fang sprang forward. She’d never felt stronger or faster. She wasn’t fighting for herself – she was fighting for Vanille. This Viper would pay for hurting her sister. She would pay and – the other woman’s sword rapped against her knuckles. Fang hissed and barely managed to hold onto her spear. A booted foot swept out, and Fang tumbled to the ground. 

Fang stabbed up with her spear, driving the Viper back, and then scrambled to her feet. She still hadn’t landed a real hit. The Viper came forward again. She attacked all of Fang’s weaknesses, and Fang had no choice but to adjust. Another strike opened her defence up – Fang’s spear had been a shade too high on her block – and a flick of her opponent’s wrist disarmed her. A rough shove had Fang down on the ground, and she glared up, defiant.

“Not bad.”

The Viper yanked off her helmet, and Fang cursed as all the lights in the house turned on again. She blinked, straining to make out her opponent. It was Lightning.

“You!” Fang glanced over to find that Vanille had been freed from the net by one of Lightning’s servants. “What was that?” Fang got back to her feet and stomped toward Lightning. Who did she think she was, treating them like this? The utter calm on Lightning’s face only made her angrier. She lunged forward and threw a punch, but Lightning knocked her back onto the ground. “Damn it! Why did you attack us?” Another hasty, angry attack ended up with Fang on the ground again.

“Stay down until you calm down.” Lightning set one booted foot down on top of Fang’s hand. She hadn’t put any weight on it yet, but it was a very obvious reminder that she could, if she wanted, break Fang’s hand. “Stop and think for a second. What just happened and why?”

“You staged this whole thing.” Fang growled. “You snuck into your own house, cut the lights, and made us think we were under attack.”

“Yes, now tell me why I did it?”

“Because you’re crazy.” Vanille gasped, and the pressure on Fang’s hand increased ever so slightly. She gulped. “Fine… it… it was a test.” She tried to pull her hand out from beneath Lightning’s boot, but her hand wasn’t going anywhere. “A spar can’t simulate a real fight perfectly. You wanted to see how Vanille and I did in what we thought was a real fight. You also wanted to see how quickly we learned and if we could follow instructions – that’s why you cut the lights and asked us to learn the layout of the house.”

The pressure on Fang’s hand lessened. “Very good. Now tell me what you learned from our fight.”

Fang thought back to their fight and began to rattle off all the details – details that her mind had somehow managed to keep track of during the battle. When she was done, Lightning’s smile was small but warm.

“You have a very good mind for battle and detail, Fang, so it’s a pity you haven’t used it more until now. But we’ll fix that.” Lightning took her foot off Fang’s hand and helped her up. “As for the weaknesses in your stances and your moves, we’ll fix those too. But we have to fix your emotions as well –” She held up one hand for quiet when Fang tried to cut in. “Emotions aren’t bad, Fang, and you should draw strength from them. But you shouldn’t let them control you.”

“Okay.”

“Good. Now, get cleaned up and then head back to sleep. Your training begins tomorrow.”

“What about Vanille’s test?” Fang asked. “Because unless I’m mistaken, this test was more about me than her.”

“Oh, I’ll test her, don’t worry about that.” Behind Fang, Vanille gulped.

Fang nodded slowly. “You weren’t lying when you said you’d push us, were you?”

“You two have potential. But potential isn’t enough. Potential can’t change anything. It can’t save anyone. To bring out all of your potential, I am going to push you, and I’m going to push you hard. But the only reason I’m going to do that is because I know you two won’t break. Bend perhaps, but not break.” Lightning reached up and traced one finger along the cut on Fang’s shoulder. “Legends aren’t born, Fang. They are made with blood and sweat and tears. I will make you two legends.”

“So, do you think I’ll be able to beat you one day?” Fang grinned. “Because you sound like you’re going to turn Vanille and me into heroes or something.”

Lightning’s eyes softened for a moment, and then she laughed. “Wait another five hundred years, and maybe you’ll be good enough to take me on.”

As Lightning walked away, Vanille came over and grabbed Fang by the arm.

“Lightning is awesome!” Vanille whispered. “But she’s a bit crazy too.”

Fang laughed. “She is, isn’t she?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I neither own Final Fantasy, nor am I making any money off of this.
> 
> So, here is the second chapter! Lightning finally got her hands on Fang and Vanille, and are any of you surprised that she went a little overboard with her test? Regardless of whether you think this is time travel or dimension hopping, it should be clear that this Lightning has seen some terrible things. If Fang and Vanille are going to get through them – never mind change anything – they’re going to need to be as strong as Lightning can make them. The big question is, though, can they change anything? I guess, we’ll find out later!
> 
> Also, Elmyra and Aerith are both from Final Fantasy VII. Rather than using completely original characters, I thought I’d go with some old fan favourite.
> 
> I also write original fiction. Most of my original stuff is fantasy. If you like fantasy with plenty of atmosphere, action, and strong female characters, check out The Last Huntress, I’m sure you’ll love it. If you’re in the mood for fantasy with a more ‘old-fashioned’ feel, then take a look at The Burning Mountains. You can find links to my original fiction in my profile.
> 
> I’ve also released my newest original story, Durendal. It runs to ~80,000 words, making it the first novel-length original story that I’ve made available to the public! It’s a coming-of-age story and a Western with elements of science fiction. If you’ve enjoyed my other stories, I know you’ll love this one. If you want a paranormal Western with a good sense of humour, you might want to check out The Gunslinger and the Necromancer.
> 
> As always, I appreciate feedback. Reviews and comments are welcome.


	3. The First Day

**The First Day**

Fang woke to a sharp knock on the bedroom door. She rolled out of bed and stumbled to the door. Lightning was there, already dressed for the day ahead.

“Uh…” She swallowed a yawn and did her best to look suitably alert. The faint smirk on Lightning’s lips told her that she’d failed miserably. 

“It’s morning. Your training begins today. I expect you and Vanille in the courtyard in fifteen minutes.” Lightning paused, and her voice took on a hard edge. “Believe me, you don’t want to be late.”

Fang gulped. “We’ll be there.”

She shut the door. Outside, sunrise was still a few minutes away. Lightning really was an early riser. But there was no time to waste. She and Vanille could not afford to be late. Who knew what Lightning would do to them if they were?

“Vanille, get up.”

Vanille pawed at Fang’s hands and tried to roll over. “Go away. It’s too early. I’m still sleeping.” Fang grabbed Vanille and dragged her out of bed. “Hey! What are you – oh! We have training now, don’t we?”

“Yes, we do. And Lightning said not to be late.”

“Ugh… it’s so early.” Vanille yawned. “Fine, let’s get ready.”

They got dressed and made it to the courtyard in exactly fourteen minutes and thirty seconds. Fang wasn’t averse to waking up early – she’d gone on her fair share of hunts. But after Lightning’s little test, she hadn’t gotten the best night’s sleep. Vanille was even worse. The redhead resembled a zombie as she trudged into the courtyard, barely able to put one foot in front of the other.

“You made it with thirty seconds to spare.” Lightning didn’t seem the least bit sleepy. “That’s good.”

Fang shrugged. “I didn’t want to find out what would happen if we were late.”

“A wise attitude. As part of your training, I expect both of you to improve your physical fitness. Skill and experience are both extremely important. But even if you know what to do, it won’t matter if your body isn’t physically capable of doing what it has to.” Lightning pinned Vanille with a stare, and the girl snapped to attention. “Vanille, would I be correct in thinking that you let Fang handle most of the physical labour.”

“Uh… maybe?” Vanille squirmed. Fang sniggered. Lightning glared. “Okay, fine. Yes, Fang does most of the heavy lifting.”

“That changes today.” Lightning towered over Vanille. “I can already tell that you don’t have the temperament for a frontline fighter. But you’re highly intelligent and cunning, which makes you ideally suited for offering support. Still, if something does happen to Fang, you need to be able to protect her. Do you understand?”

“Yes.”

“Good. So today, we’re going to go on a little run. Fang, you’ll be up front. Vanille, I expect you to keep up. I will be at the back. If either of you even think of slacking off, you’ll answer to me.”

Fang and Vanille took a slow step back. Lightning’s posture hadn’t changed at all, but she radiated menace.

“Um… what do you mean?” Vanille asked.

Lightning went over to one of the racks of weapons and came back with a wooden practice sword. She took one step and brought the weapon around in a strike aimed at Vanille’s head. The weapon came to a rest an inch from Vanille’s cheek. Fang swallowed thickly. She hadn’t even had a chance to react to the attack.

“Do you see this? I’ll be using it to encourage you when you slack off.”

Fang had a feeling that neither she nor Vanille would be doing much slacking off. 

“Well, what are you standing around for?” Lightning growled. “Run! Fang, take us around the neighbourhood. I expect you to set a decent pace and to memorise the layout. Multitask.”

Fang broke into a light jog. She knew Vanille wouldn’t be able to keep up if she ran at full speed, but her sister should be okay with this. She’d barely taken more than a dozen steps before something jabbed her in the back. It was Lightning’s wooden sword.

“Did I say to jog?” Lightning poked Fang again. “I told you to run!”

Fang shot Vanille a worried look. The redhead nodded.

“I’ll be okay,” Vanille said. They both knew it wasn’t true. 

But Fang didn’t have a choice. She ran.

It wasn’t long at all before Fang could hear Vanille struggling behind her. Not only was Vanille younger but also she’d never been particularly gifted when it came to things like running. Vanille’s greatest strength had always been her mind. She wanted to slow down, but the thunderous expression on Lightning’s face made it very clear that doing so would be a very, very bad idea.

Fang forced herself to push on, even as Vanille’s footsteps and breathing grew more and more ragged. She heard a yelp, and she turned in time to see Lightning poke Vanille with the sword. There were already a few people on the streets, but none of them said a word. A warrior’s training was a private matter. It was only to be interrupted under the most serious circumstances.

“You’re falling behind, Vanille.” Lightning jabbed her with the sword. “Don’t you want to keep up with your sister? Who will watch her back if you’re not there? Are you going to let some Viper stab her in the back because you’re too slow?”

Vanille grit her teeth and did her best to ignore the burning in her chest. Ahead of her, Fang slowed her pace, and Lightning darted forward to prod Fang with the sword.

“I didn’t tell you to slow down, Fang!”

“But –”

“Run!”

So Fang ran, even though she hated herself for every step that she took. And behind her, she could hear Lightning talking to Vanille, ordering Vanille to keep up, to push herself, to find that little bit extra she needed to keep going. 

“One day Fang is going to need you, Vanille. Don’t you want to be there?”

But eventually, not even Lightning’s words or her sword could keep Vanille on her feet. She crashed to the ground, and Fang screeched to a halt. Vanille tried to get up, but her legs were like jelly. Fang moved to help her.

“Vanille.”

“Do not help her.” Lightning stepped between them. “Let her try again.”

“She’s my sister.” Fang tried to shove past Lightning. “I’m not going to leave her –”

There was a blur of motion. Before she even realised what had happened, Fang’s face was pressed into the dirt. Lightning had one booted foot on the back of her head. 

“She needs to do this, Fang.” Lightning pulled her foot back, and Fang rolled onto her back. “You’ve always been there to help her. But she needs to know that she can manage on her own. Out there – on the battlefield – you won’t always be able to help her. She has to learn to help herself, and it is much better for her to learn that here than in battle.”

Fang’s jaw clenched, and she got back onto her feet. She would have tried to help Vanille again, but she wasn’t stupid. Lightning had thrown her around like an unruly child. 

“It’s okay, Fang.” Vanille stumbled back to her feet. “I can do this. See?” And then she began to hobble forward, clearly exhausted. “We can keep going now.”

“Keep running, Fang.” Lightning’s eyes narrowed. “All the way to the house.”

“No. Not with Vanille like that.”

Vanille gave her a tired wave. “I can handle it, Fang.”

“You can’t handle it, Vanille! You can barely walk –”

“Fang, you are going to start running right now.” Lightning’s expression softened ever so slightly. “I don’t expect you to keep up, Vanille, but I do expect you to try. Whatever happens, you are to make it back to the house without help. I don’t care if you have to crawl. You make it on your own.”

Fang’s jaw clenched. Regardless of how badly her first attempt had gone, she was a heartbeat away from picking another fight. But Vanille gave her another tired smile.

“Just run, Fang. I promise I’ll be okay. And Lightning is right. This will make us tougher.”

With her jaw clenched so hard it hurt, Fang turned and began to run back toward the house. Vanille fell behind instantly, but Lightning seemed content to let her stumble back home. Instead, Lightning focused all of her efforts on Fang.

“Faster, Fang. I know you can go faster. Show me how fast you truly are.”

The sword whistled through the air, and Fang upped her speed to dodge it. This was crazy. Another swing of the sword showed her that Lightning was completely serious. Fang had no choice but to run as fast as she could. But what was even crazier was that Lightning kept up, seemingly without effort. 

By the time that Fang staggered into the courtyard, she was practically dead on her feet. She’d never run that fast for that long. Lightning watched her slump against one of the pillars that lined the courtyard and then tossed her a gourd of water.

“Stretch while you’re still warm and then have something to drink. Once you’ve done that, I’ll start teaching you how to use that spear of yours properly.”

Fang focused on her breathing as she moved through her stretches. As she neared the last of them, Vanille crawled into the courtyard and then collapsed. Lightning sighed and carried the redhead over to a chair.

“Well done. You made it back. Stretch and have something to drink. Once you’ve done that, have a bath, eat, and then go to Aerith. I’ve spoken with her instructor. You’ll be learning healing with Aerith.”

Vanille giggled. “That sounds great. I have a feeling Fang and I will be needing a lot of healing.” She gave Fang a sympathetic look. “And at least, I’m not going to get whacked anymore today.”

X X X

After a short break, Lightning sent Fang to get her spear while she took one from a rack along the edge of the courtyard.

“You know how to use a spear?” Fang had never seen Lightning handle one before.

“I was taught by the greatest spear wielder the Yun ever produced.” A soft smile crossed Lightning’s lips, but it was gone so quickly that Fang wasn’t sure if she’d really seen it. “I’m not as good as she was, but I doubt there’s a person alive that knows more about how the Yun wield a spear than me.”

Fang leaned on her spear and fixed her gaze on Lightning. “You’re not Yun, are you? You speak our language, and you know our ways, but I’ve never seen one who looks like you.”

“No, I wasn’t born a Yun. But as your elders have learned, the Yun have nothing to fear from me. I made a promise to someone very dear to me. I swore to help the Oerba, the Yun, and the Dia.” Lightning raised her spear. “Now, Fang, show me what you can do.”

Fang grinned. Now this was something she was comfortable with. Her fatigue melted away as she slipped into the familiar movements of the spear. The spear had not come easily to her at first. It didn’t help that she’d wasn’t properly trained as a child. Instead, she’d watched the warriors at the training grounds, imitating what she saw and improvising when she ran into problems. As she’d grown older, she’d managed to impress some of the veterans, who’d passed on a few tips and tricks. 

Her spare time was spent honing her skills. But it was only in the past two years that she’d impressed the veterans enough for some of them to teach her in a more formal capacity. It was a side effect of being an orphan – a child normally learned such skills from their parents, but she had none to teach her.

But although Fang had improved remarkably over the past few years, Lightning was far, far better than her. The older woman moved with an unearthly sort of grace, still as a statue at one moment before moving with a seamless combination of grace, speed, and power. Her style was undoubtedly that of the Yun – Fang would recognise it anywhere – but there were a host of things that she did in subtly different ways.

Lightning was content to let Fang take the lead. As Fang attacked, Lightning blocked, parried, and dodged. She was letting Fang show her skills, and Fang seized the opportunity with both hands. She would show Lightning that she was more than worthy of being trained. After a while, Lightning began to push back, her spear darting out as quickly as a striking snake as she tested Fang’s defence. In a sudden moment of clarity, Fang realised that she was being taught without a single word being exchanged.

A slightly awkward attack from Fang was mirrored by Lightning once, twice, and then a third time until Fang understood the corrections she needed to make, as well as how to properly defend against the attack. A mistake in her stance was exploited before Lightning showed the correct way to place her feet.

Despite the bruises she was picking up – she’d be dead if Lightning was using a sharpened spear – Fang couldn’t stop smiling. She was learning so much. It was like Lightning had spent years watching her and learning her weakness, all so that she could get rid of them. Even better, Fang was beginning to understand why Lightning’s style had so many subtle differences from the usual style.

Men had designed most of the spear forms. But women didn’t have the same body structure as men. Their hips were usually wider, and their shoulders were usually less broad. Even their centre of gravity tended to be different. The style that Lightning used had clearly been designed by a woman.

“Enough,” Lightning said at last. Fang was panting, and sweat rolled down her face. “Tell me what you think about our spar.”

No one else had ever asked her something like that. She told Lightning some of the things she’d noticed and then added, “Why do you always ask me what I think about stuff?”

“Winning isn’t enough, not if you want to be great.” Lightning handed Fang some more water. “You need to understand why you’re winning. Likewise, if you lose, you need to understand why you lost. A style, Fang, is solid. It is firm. But things change. Battles are dynamic, fluid. You must be able to recognise your own strengths and weaknesses so that you can recognise the strengths and weaknesses of your opponent.” Her lips curled. “But you’re very rough around the edges.”

“Nobody taught me when I first started.” Fang turned away. It had never bothered her before, but Lightning’s technique was so polished… so, so perfect. “When I started, I was just another orphan. I didn’t have any family to teach me, and nobody would take me on because I hadn’t proved myself yet. So I watch and copied until I learned enough to impress a few people.”

“That would explain while your style is a little… awkward.” Fang winced, but Lightning pressed on. “Don’t be ashamed. That isn’t your fault. You’ve done a lot with what you’ve got. But your style is flawed. As your tutor, it is my responsibility to correct those flaws.” She took up a stance. “Watch closely. We’ll go through each of the basic forms to make sure that you’ve got them down properly.”

They worked on the basic forms and techniques until Fang’s arms felt like they would fall off. Lightning demonstrated and then walked around her, pointing out flaws and making corrections. She even offered a few words of praise when Fang managed to correct a particularly subtle mistake. It made Fang glow with pride to be acknowledged by someone like Lightning.

As noon approached, Fang’s stomach gave a loud rumble. Lightning’s lips twitched in amusement, and she called a halt to the training session. Some servants came with food, and the pair of them ate together on a table set near the courtyard.

“How can you not be more tired?” Fang gulped down some water and then struggled to eat in a semi-civilised manner. She wasn’t the strongest or fastest warrior in the village, but she was no slouch, and Lightning had kept up easily. “Are you even human?”

There was a long, long pause.

Fang gasped. “No way… are you… l’Cie?” She’d met a few of them in the past. The fal’Cie of Gran Pulse had gifted some of their elite warriors with powers capable of driving off whole squads of Vipers. But Lightning didn’t have a l’Cie mark on her, although it could have been concealed by her clothing.

Lightning put down her spoon and fork. Her eyes burned into Fang’s, and Fang got the sense, once again, that Lightning was looking right into her soul and seeing something that not even Fang was aware of. “No, I’m not a l’Cie.” She smiled thinly. “I’m something else.”

“Something else?”

“There are powers greater than the fal’Cie, powers that not even the Maker can command.” Lightning chuckled as Fang paled. Her eyes twinkled. “You know, you’re remarkably gullible.”

“What?” Fang squawked. “You were joking? You had me worried there.”

“Was I joking?” Lightning gaze hardened, and her mouth settled into a frown. Then she smirked. “You tell me.”

Fang stared. This teasing side of Lightning was completely at odds with everything she knew about the woman. What had happened to the person that had forced Vanille to run until she collapsed, the same woman who had swung a wooden sword at Fang’s head all the way home? It was equal parts fascinating and frustrating. “But you do have powers, right?”

“You could say that.” Lightning flicked one hand out. Sparks crackled over her fingertips, and one of the training dummies in the courtyard exploded. Little bits of wood and straw rained down, and there was a large scorch mark on the ground.

“You didn’t use that when we fought.”

“Power is useless if you don’t know how to use it properly. I’ve fought – and beaten – people who were stronger than me because they relied too much on their powers and not enough on their wits.” Lightning lowered her hand. “And I’m your tutor. Killing you during your first day of training would be the opposite of useful. Besides, it’s not like you have powers.”

Fang went back to eating her lunch. Lightning was right. She would do anything – even become a l’Cie – if it was to protect Vanille. But unless that happened, she was far better off learning how to use a spear. “What else can you use apart from a spear and a sword?”

Lightning’s reply came in the form of a knife that she drove into the table between two of Fang’s fingers. In the instant that it took Fang to jerk away after registering the attack, Lightning had completed four disabling or deadly blows: one at her throat, another at her eyes, a third at her temple, and a fourth at her chest. She’d pulled each strike just before it could do any harm, but her point was very clear. Lightning was good with a knife.

“You have got to teach me how to do that.” Fang sucked in a deep breath. “I didn’t even see you move.”

“Later.” Lightning stood. “We’ve worked enough on your body for the moment. Now, we will work on your mind. Have a bath and then meet me in my study.” She watched Fang ease herself back onto her feet. “You may have an hour to bathe.”

The bath was a blessing. Fang took her time and then went to meet Lightning in her study. Several books were already open on the pink-haired woman’s desk. She hesitated at the doorway. Were they going to be reading something difficult? Fang hoped not. 

“What are we doing?” Fang did her best to hide her nervousness. “I thought we would be talking about strategy or something.”

“Another time. First, I’m going to be teaching you about human anatomy. Later, I’ll send you with Vanille to learn more about healing. But first, I want to teach you anatomy from a warrior’s perspective.” Lightning gestured at the other chair at the desk. “Now, sit down and start reading. If you have any questions, ask me.”

“What will you be doing while I read?”

Lightning frowned at some papers on her desk. “The elders and I are discussing some important matters. There are certain… issues that they want me to write about.”

Fang sat down and took a deep breath. She was not going to panic. She could handle this. But the longer she looked at the book, the harder it was to appear calm. Fang wasn’t stupid, but the orphanage had always been very busy, and she hadn’t wanted Vanille to think less of her. It was silly because she knew how much Vanille loved her, but her little sister had always been better at anything involving books or scrolls or machines. It was like Vanille had been born knowing all those things while Fang had been left to muddle through it on her own since no one at the orphanage had the time to teach her and she was too ashamed to ask Vanille for help.

She’d hidden it well over the years – she was clever, if not in the way that Vanille was – and she’d rarely had much reason to read anything complicated. Fang could read – but only barely. And now, staring at all the letters on the page that were put together into words she’d never even heard of, it was all she could do not to panic. Her breathing quickened. She had to calm down. She just had to break the words down into sounds, but Lightning was right there. The other woman would definitely notice if Fang started saying the sounds aloud.

Who would want an apprentice who couldn’t even read properly? Fang closed her eyes. Things were going so well, and she’d been so sure that Lightning would be focused on making her a better fighter. She hadn’t even thought about something like this. 

No.

She could handle this. She could. All she had to do was go letter by letter. She could sound it out in her head and –

“You can’t read properly?” There was genuine amazement in Lightning’s voice, and Fang turned, a lie on her lips. But she couldn’t lie, not with Lightning’s eyes locked onto hers.

“I…” Fang swallowed thickly. “No, I can’t.”

“I see.” For a moment, Lightning’s expression was completely inscrutable. Fang imagined a hundred different scenarios, all of them worse than the last. She and Vanille would be thrown out onto the street and – “Okay.” Lightning took the book about anatomy and closed it. “We’ll start with something simpler then.”

“You’re… you’re not mad?” Fang hated how small and weak she sounded. She was supposed to be a warrior, not a frightened child.

“I’m surprised, but I’m not angry.” Lightning sighed, and for an instant she seemed impossibly weary. Then her shoulders straightened, and her voice took on that firm, implacable tone that Fang had already gotten used to. “Really, I shouldn’t be surprised. You and Vanille grew up in an orphanage. I know how those places are. They try their best, but there are so many orphans to look after.”

“You’re not going to get rid of me and Vanille?”

Lightning shook her head. “No. What kind of tutor would I be if I got rid of you over something like this? I’ll just have to work on your reading as well.” She patted one of the books. “There’s a lot that you can learn from books.” Fang’s gaze fell until Lightning reached out and tilted her chin up. “Listen to me. You aren’t stupid. I’ll work with you on your reading until you can read every book in this house.”

“Really?”

“Yes.” Lightning took out a pad of paper and a pen. “We’ll start off with the alphabet. I want to see exactly how much you know.” Her gaze softened. “Fang, if you don’t understand something, ask me. I won’t think less of you. I know that I can seem… cruel, but I only want what is best for you and Vanille.”

“I know.” Fang knew that now. Only someone who cared would have treated her so kindly. But why did Lightning care? What had she and Vanille done to earn that kind of devotion? There had to be something she was missing. 

“All right, Fang. Let’s begin.”

X X X

Fang only became aware of Vanille’s return when Lightning left to speak with some of the servants about a private matter. Vanille slipped into the study and wrapped her arms around Fang. Despite how futile it would be, Fang was sorely tempted to hide all of the evidence. There were dozens of sheets of paper scattered around with letters and simple words written on them.

Lightning had been incredibly patient. And no matter how many times Fang stumbled over the letters and words, she’d never lost her temper. Instead she continued to encourage Fang with small smiles and interesting quotations from books she’d read. 

“You never told me,” Vanille said, pressing her face into Fang’s hair. “I would have helped you, if only you’d told me.”

“I didn’t want you to think I was stupid.” Tears prickled at the corner of her eyes, and Fang blinked them away. “Things were tough enough, and you were always smart enough for the both of us.”

“You’re smart too, Fang, and you’ve got nothing to be ashamed of. I know that you can get good at reading. You just have to practice. It’s like all that physical stuff for me. I know I’m not very fit compared to you, but I can get better if I practice.” Vanille grinned. “We can help each other – that’s what sisters do, isn’t it?”

Fang nodded. Some people would have said those words just to make her feel better, but Vanille meant every one. “Yeah, we’ll help each other out.” She paused. “How… how long were you standing by the door?”

“Oh, long enough.” Vanille giggled and took a quick look around to make sure they were alone. “I never thought Lightning could be so… so gentle. She was really nice to you.”

“She was.”

Lightning cleared her throat. “I’m not a complete tyrant, you know.”

Vanille gulped. “Uh, hi. I’m back.”

“I can see that. How was your session with the healer? I trust you learned a few things.”

“I did.” Vanille gave a quick summary of what she’d learned before she launched into a cheerful spiel about how good Aerith was at fixing people. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be as good as her – she’s a natural. But I can already think of a few ways that I’d change some of the potions and poultices to make them better… but I should probably wait until I’ve learned more. I mean it has only been a day. I might poison somebody instead of curing them.” She grinned. “But Aerith is lending me some of her books so that I can study in my free time.”

“Good.” Lightning patted Fang on the shoulder. “Are you ready for some more exercise?”

“I think so.” Fang was feeling much better about her reading, but it would be nice to get back to something familiar. “What did you have in mind?”

“Vanille, get your binding rod.”

They headed over the courtyard. Lightning pointed to some of the training dummies and targets.

“Show me what you can do with that binding rod of yours.”

Vanille shrugged and got to work. After she had demonstrated her ability to grab and ensnare things of different shapes and sizes, Lightning asked her to stop. The blue-eyed woman reached into her pocket.

“Do you know what this is?” Vanille shook her head. “It’s a mana-drive.”

Fang straightened. A mana-drive was a device that let normal people use magic. She’d never seen one up close before, never mind actually used one. But why would Lightning have one? She had her own powers to rely on.

“That is so awesome.” Vanille rubbed her hands together. She didn’t know how to build one, but if she could get a closer look maybe she could throw something together. “Can I see it?” 

“No.” Lightning’s lips curved up at the edges. “But if you can take it from me, I’ll let you have it.” Vanille lunged forward, but Lightning twisted away and held up one hand. “You didn’t let me finish. You have to use your binding rod.”

Vanille’s hands tightened around her weapon. Fang could practically see the thoughts swimming around in Vanille’s head as she took stock of the situation and ran through all the different scenarios she could think of. From the frown on her face, Vanille had already come to the same conclusion as Fang. It was not going to be easy.

“To make things a little easier,” Lightning said as she drew a large square in the dust with a wooden practice sword. “I’m not going to leave this square.”

“And I can really have the mana-drive if I can get it from you with my binding rod?”

“Absolutely.”

“Get ready then.” Vanille swung the binding rod around. “Here I come!”

Fifteen minutes later, and Vanille was struggling to hold her binding rod up. Lightning, meanwhile, didn’t even look winded. Vanille had put an admirable amount of energy into each attack, but Lightning had dodged with inhuman grace. She had jumped, ducked, and twisted around every single attack, the mana-drive held in the palm of one hand.

“You need to think ahead more, Vanille.” Lightning ducked beneath the binding rod’s wires and then jumped to the side. “Don’t try to just catch me, think of where I will be after I dodge. It’s like those board games people play – think several moves ahead. If you force me to jump, aim your next attack for where I’ll be when I jump. If you force me to dodge to the side, aim for where I’ll be when I’m dodging.”

“I’m trying.” Vanille huffed. “But you’re too fast.”

Lightning leaned back to avoid another attack. “True, you do need to work on your speed. For now, however, I’ll make things a bit easier for you. Fang, take those practice spears off the rack. You can help. But you’re not allowed to step into the square. I want you to practice throwing a spear.”

“What if I hit you?” The practice spears were blunted, but they would still hurt.

“Then I don’t deserve to be your tutor. Consider this an exercise in teamwork. Work together, and you might – maybe – get the mana-drive. Last night you got in each other’s way. Do better this time. You have fifteen more minutes.”

“Okay, let’s go, Fang!” Vanille took several deep breaths. “We can get that mana-drive!”

They didn’t get the mana-drive in the allotted time. They didn’t even come close. But they did learn some very interesting things. The two of them were a natural team. All the time they’d spent together meant that they barely had to a say a word to communicate. They also learned a lot about planning ahead.

Simply put, Lightning was too fast to hit with any kind of straightforward attack. Not even a spear thrown with all the force Fang could muster got anywhere close. But the more they planned ahead – the more they tried to anticipate Lightning’s movements – the closer they got. Not that they got very close at all. 

Fang’s already huge respect for their tutor went up even more. Lightning was unbelievably fast and agile, and she seemed to have a sixth sense for what they were doing. She could have sworn that Lightning had dodged some of their attacks without even looking. Fang needed to learn how to do that.

“All right,” Lightning said. “That’s enough of that for today. So, tell me what you think you could improve on.” 

After discussing what they’d learned, Lightning offered her own suggestions. Apparently, both Fang and Vanille had certain tells – little quirks in their behaviour – that gave away what they would be doing before they did it. A skilled opponent could use that to predict their attacks. To Fang’s surprise, Lightning even spent time going through techniques with Vanille.

“I didn’t get a chance to do it today, but I’ll start going through some forms and techniques with you, tomorrow Vanille. The binding rod is a tricky weapon to use, but you seem to have a knack for it. Who knows, maybe you’ll even become good enough to take the mana-drive from me next time.”

“You’re letting us try again?” Vanille asked, eyes gleaming with the thought of getting the mana-drive.

“Of course. But before you can catch me, you might want to practice on someone else.” Lightning waved Fang over. “This way both of you can train. Vanille, you can work on your technique. Fang, you can work on your ability to anticipate attacks and dodge.”

Vanille cackled. “So I have to catch, Fang? Do I get a prize?”

“In a way. Tonight, how much dinner you get is directly related to how good you are with your binding rod.”

“Oh…” Vanille turned to Fang with renewed determination. “I’m sorry, Fang, but I’m really hungry.” She lifted her binding rod. “Um… good luck, I guess.”

X X X

“Ouch.” Fang winced as Aerith dabbed some more cream onto one of her cuts. Vanille had been absolutely ruthless. Still, it had been good training. Fang had been pushed to the limits of her speed and agility to dodge all the binding rod’s wires “Can’t you just heal this with your powers?”

Lightning shook her head. “Aerith needs the practice, and you need to get used to fighting with cuts, bruises, and other injuries. You won’t always have a healer with you when you go into battle. And even if you do, they might not have the time or energy to heal you.”

“I’m so sorry.” Vanille scratched the back of her head. “I thought I had to catch you if I wanted to have any dinner.”

“I never said that.” Lightning smirked. “And technically, your skill with a binding rod was related to how much dinner you got.”

Contrary to Vanille and Fang’s belief, Vanille’s ability to catch Fang with her binding rod – which she had done several times – was not directly related to her dinner. No, Lightning had opted for something that was somehow kinder yet infinitely more devious.

Lightning had taken their dinner and put it all in tightly sealed containers that she hung from some of the training dummies. Anything that Fang and Vanille wanted to eat, the redhead had to grab with her binding rod and bring back to them. Vanille had risen to the challenge, and Fang had a feeling that she’d be bringing her binding rod to the dinner table more often. Why ask someone to pass the salt when Vanille could grab it with a binding rod? 

The strange thing was that Fang didn’t think Vanille’s skill had increased that much. It had, after all, only been one training session. What Lightning had done was give Vanille confidence in the skill that she did have while showing her what she needed to work on to improve. Lightning had forced Vanille to the very limits of her skill without pushing her too far. It was, Fang realised, the exact same thing that Lightning had done with her when it came to the spear.

Dinner tasted better that night than it had in a long time. The highlight of the meal came when Vanille, in one of her little flights of mischief, tried to snag Lighting’s food. The warrior smiled and then vanished in a flash of movement. She reappeared next to Vanille. Smiling, she took the sweet bread that Vanille had been saving for desert and cut it in half.

“That was very foolish.” Lightning ate her half of the sweetbread. “Don’t you think?”

Vanille gulped and nodded. “Uh… yeah.”

Lightning ruffled Vanille’s hair. “Next time, wait until I’m distracted.”

Later that night as Fang and Vanille lay in their beds, Vanille yawned and then laughed.

“Today was interesting, wasn’t it, Fang?”

“It was.”

“It was really tough to begin with, but I learned a lot. And… Lightning isn’t as cold as she seems sometimes. I think… I think she’s really quite friendly on the inside.”

Fang thought of the gentleness in Lightning’s voice as she’d helped Fang with her reading. “I think so too.” She closed her eyes. “I really like it here, Vanille.”

“I like it here too, Fang.” 

They were happy – at least until Lightning came to wake them up in the morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, I neither own Final Fantasy, nor am I making any money off of this.
> 
> Chapter three has arrived! I still haven’t said exactly where and when Lightning has come from, but it should be getting clearer by now. As much as Fang thinks Lightning was joking around with her, Lightning was telling her some of the truth. Fang just doesn’t have any way of realising that it’s the truth.
> 
> In this chapter, I wanted to go over what kind of tutor Lightning would be. If she seems cruel at times, it’s because she knows exactly what’s coming. She has absolutely no intention of letting Fang and Vanille go out there unprepared. They were always going to be great – Lightning wants to make them even greater.
> 
> I must admit that there is a certain amusement to having Lightning teach Fang and Vanille more about how to use their weapons. From Lightning’s comments, it should be clear who taught her how to use a spear – it was an older version of Fang. Likewise, Lightning knows how to use a binding rod from spending so much time with an older version of Vanille.
> 
> With regards to Fang’s problems with reading, I know there isn’t any real canon support for this. But I wanted something that could help Fang realise just how committed to helping Lightning really is. There is nothing more frightening than having that kind of vulnerability exposed, and there is nothing more reassuring than receiving help to fix that vulnerability. Obviously, Fang isn’t stupid, but she did grow up in an orphanage and spend most of her time learning how to fight and hunt. I don’t think it’s at all unrealistic that she might have a few problems with things like reading since it wouldn’t exactly be a priority.
> 
> Fang growing up an orphan also explains why her spear work needs a bit of polishing. No one would understand her strengths and weaknesses better than Lightning, and think of how scary this Fang will end up with Lightning already taking steps to fix problems while introducing her to a fully realised version of the style that an older Fang uses? Yeah, she’s going to be pretty scary. I also couldn’t resist adding a little bit of humour with Vanille’s exercise. I’ve always thought the binding rod is a kind of hilarious weapon. I mean, it’s useful and all, but it seems a bit awkward to use. Oh well, Vanille wouldn’t be the same without it.
> 
> For those of you wondering why there isn’t a huge amount of Fang/Lightning romantic goodness, don’t forget that things are a bit different here. Fang is fourteen. That alone would make things awkward. And as things stand, this Fang isn’t yet the Fang that Lightning knows. It makes things a little bit strange, especially for Lightning. As Fang’s gets older however… well, we’ll see how things go. 
> 
> I also write original fiction. Most of my original stuff is fantasy. If you like fantasy with plenty of atmosphere, action, and strong female characters, check out The Last Huntress, I’m sure you’ll love it. If you’re in the mood for fantasy with a more ‘old-fashioned’ feel, then take a look at The Burning Mountains. You can find links to my original fiction in my profile.
> 
> I’ve also released my newest original story, Durendal. It runs to ~80,000 words, making it the first novel-length original story that I’ve made available to the public! It’s a coming-of-age story and a Western with elements of science fiction. If you’ve enjoyed my other stories, I know you’ll love this one. If you want a paranormal Western with a good sense of humour, you might want to check out The Gunslinger and the Necromancer.
> 
> As always, I appreciate feedback. Reviews and comments are welcome.


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